Happy Tuesday, Bellingham. In today’s edition: A historic home tour, a gingerbread house workshop, a holiday maker’s market, and more.

Let’s get to it — Cait Baker

📰 In the news

Neighborhood parking overhaul planned: Starting Jan. 5, 2026, parts of Fairhaven will switch from 2-hour limits to paid parking on Larrabee and Harris avenues and 11th to 13th streets, boosting turnover and access — see which streets are affected.

Pup-approved Northwest getaway: A 2026 guide spotlights Bellingham’s dog-friendly scene, from waterfront walks at Boulevard Park and Taylor Dock to Lake Padden off-leash trails, Little Squalicum Beach, brewery patios, and pet-welcoming hotels — see the full dog-friendly guide.

Neighbors step up for neighbors: After Alger Food Bank closed Oct. 31, demand has tripled in a town of barely 500. Volunteers opened a community hall pantry and are repairing the facility with new leadership — read the full story.

Compare rates for free: The national average for car insurance is around $175 per month. Paying more than that? Same, so I did some shopping around and ended up cutting my premium in half. If you haven’t checked in a while, you’re probably overpaying too — here’s the comparison tool I used.

Identity theft is up 25%: Last year, Americans lost $12.5 billion to ID theft & fraud, and the stories behind those numbers are brutal. My friend just told me his dad’s on his fourth replacement credit card. Other folks have woken up to empty bank accounts or their personal info dumped online after a breach. Aura catches these kinds of attacks early by monitoring for new accounts, weird money movements, leaked data, and other red flags so you’re alerted before things blow up — learn more about it here.

Highlights this week

• Holiday Makers Market benefits United Way
• Sip festive cocktails at this holiday pop-up
• Join Bellingham’s lighted bike parade
• Help restore wetlands at Connelly Creek
• View stunning photography at this art gallery exhibit
• This pet insurance plan reimburses up to 90%
• A tiny hearing aid is taking the US by storm

🫶 We got your back

Adjustments to road care: Whatcom County Public Works is trimming road maintenance this winter to match funding, focusing on emergencies and keeping key routes open during storms. Fewer crews mean slower routine fixes. A council-approved levy staves off deeper cuts now, but longer turnarounds and delayed projects could hit next year. Report hazards. See what’s changing this winter.

Starter home affordability crunch: Zillow says starter homes now top $1 million in 237 U.S. cities, a 280% jump in five years. Washington counts eight of them, likely among the 18 western Washington cities where typical homes already exceed $1 million. Nationwide, starters average $196,611, affordable for a median-income household. Zillow blames a pandemic-era housing shortage. Read the full story.

Cozy pours, no fuss: Flannel or not, Kulshan Brewing Company pours Kitten Mittens Winter Ale, rich, malty, cocoa-tinged. Smooth nitro and roasty lagers set the cozy tone. Perfect with a friend at a corner table, the cold kept outside while lingering over a flight.

Thinning hair? Same: I’ve been shedding a lot, and recently noticed my ponytail feeling thinner. After way too much panic-Googling, I decided to take Hers’ online quiz. They recommended a Biotin + Minoxidil green-apple gummy for regrowth and overall hair health. The whole thing was surprisingly easy: just verify who you are and a licensed provider signs off. Here’s the quiz if you want to check it out.

Makeup that actually works: My sister and I were talking the other day about how the makeup we used in our 20s… just doesn’t work now that we’re in our 30s and 40s. Laura Geller’s entire makeup line addresses this shift, with formulas that smooth, brighten, and actually stay put. If you’re in the same boat, their curated kits are worth a look.

📆 Around town this week

All events are subject to change without notice. This is entirely outside our control. Please check official event pages and social media for the most up to date information.

This week

🎨 Next Chapter Cafe and Paint @ Next Chapter Cafe | Tuesday (12/9) at 5:45pm – Nothing beats making a mess you do not have to clean at home, upstairs at Village Books. Next Chapter Cafe hosts a paint along with the Date and Paint crew, complete with caffeine, chatter, and zero pressure. Grab tickets online, bring out inner Bob Ross.

🏆 Scepter Awards | Celebrate Good Works @ Wild Buffalo | Tuesday (12/9) at 6:00pm – Skip the rubber-chicken gala and toast the folks who keep Downtown Bellingham humming. Bellebrities lip-sync, your ticket covers Hela Provisions appetizers, the bar is open, the 50/50 pot beckons, and over a dozen honors, from Most Transformative Space to Rising Stars, bring resilience and joy.

🧗‍♀️ Film Event: Girl Climber @ American Alpine Institute | Thursday (12/11) at 7:00pm – If your knees prefer stadium seating, catch Girl Climber, following pro Emily Harrington’s 24-hour push on El Cap, a near-fatal fall, and the boys’ club she shrugs off. Gripping, intimate, and unflinchingly honest, tickets are $15.

🧦 Festive Felt Stocking Ornament Workshop (Beginner Level) @ Whatcom Museum | Friday (12/12) at 4:00pm – Getting hands-on with wet felting, you’re crafting a stocking ornament while Seattle fiber ace Flóra Carlile-Kovács teaches hollow forms, color blending, and silk lamination. You leave with a keepsake and actual skills, no experience needed. Materials, museum admission, and grown-up quiet time included.

🏠 WCHS Presents: Roeder Home for the Holidays @ Roeder Home | Friday (12/12) at 5:00pm – Roeder Home is dressed up for the holidays, and we get to snoop. Stroll a historic house with live music in the parlor, a warm drink in hand, and local craft vendors you actually know. Nostalgia, twinkle lights, and zero mall chaos, supporting local history.

This weekend

🌱 Community Work Party at Connelly Creek Nature Area (South) @ Connelly Creek Nature Area | Saturday (12/13) at 10:00am – A few hours at south-side Connelly Creek is Bellingham’s favorite doctor-approved dirt therapy, with NSEA guiding the habitat and wetlands TLC. They bring tools, gloves, and tips, you bring sturdy shoes, layers, and grit. All ages welcome, space is limited, so register, and show up.

🧣 Lightweight Nunofelt Scarf Workshop (Intermediate Level) @ Whatcom Museum | Saturday (12/13) at 10:00am – Level up your felting with a day of nunofelt scarf making with Seattle’s Flóra Carlile-Kovács. For intermediate folks, you’ll learn technique and troubleshooting, materials are included, and you leave with a custom scarf and museum admission, so pack lunch, comfy shoes, and a cooperative back.

🛍️ Holiday Maker’s Market @ Kulshan Brewing (K2) | Saturday (12/13) at 4:00pm – Skip the mall and hit the fifth annual Holiday Makers Market, a local, sustainably minded pop-up where Kulshan and makers donate 10% to United Way of Whatcom County. You get gifts with a story, they get support, and your conscience gets a victory lap.

🍪 Gingerbread House Workshop @ The Blue Abode Bar | Saturday (12/13) at 4:00pm – Take a break from holiday chaos and build the only house you can actually afford this season, a gingerbread one. Roll up your sleeves, wrangle icing, and decorate a candy-coated masterpiece, then proudly ignore the gumdrop HOA. Sweet, hands-on, and delightfully low-stakes.

☘️ NOEL: A Celtic Christmas | December 14 • 3 PM Show @ Jansen Art Center | Sunday (12/14) at 3:00pm – Settle in for Celtic Christmas carols in Lynden, where four harps, because one is never enough, plus flute and cello make the season shimmer, and a storyteller ties it all together. It is cozy, polished, and festive, perfect for family, friends, or your inner sentimentalist.

Wanna see more? Browse our full events calendar →

🎶 Live music & entertainment

• 12/9 Scepter Awards @ Wild Buffalo – 6 pm
• 12/10 Andy “Bad Dogg” Koch @ Stones Throw Brewery – 6 pm
• 12/12 Rebecca Porter @ Honey Moon – 7 pm
• 12/12 Aerial Ruin and more @ The Shakedown – 9 pm
• 12/13 A Subdued Holiday Special @ First Presbyterian Church – 7 pm
• 12/13 Mason Jennings @ Wild Buffalo – 6 pm
• 12/13 Zepparella @ Bar Two Eleven – 7 pm
• 12/13 How the (Blank) Stole (Blank)mas @ The Upfront Theatre – 7:30 pm

🏠️ This house is wild

Listed by: Stephanie McSorley (Hansen Group Real Estate Inc)

In Silver Beach, a 3-bed with office and huge bonus room, 2.5 baths, shows off granite counters, solid oak floors, heated tile in the lower bath and upper utility room, and a double sided fireplace. A vaulted primary ceiling ups the airiness, smart lighting and thermostat handle the mood, landscape lights glow over a terraced, low maintenance backyard, and the extra deep garage swallows all the toys.

Trails flirt with the block, with a three minute stroll to Silver Beach Elementary. Barkley Village, Silver Beach, Squalicum High, Big Rock Garden, Whatcom Falls, and Galbraith sit comfortably close.

Take a peek inside →